IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/pra/mprapa/104317.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

Trade Openness and Employment, Implications on Urbanisation in Sub-Saharan Africa

Author

Listed:
  • Adou, Niango Sika Antoine Brice

Abstract

Why are African countries urbanizing so fast? How do cities promote growth and why is it important to solve urban issues in Africa? In the context of higher push for trade liberalisation multilaterally, it is not trivial to ask these set of question. In this study the main objective is to check the influence of trade openness of African economies on their urbanisation rate. We also assess, how evolution of non-agricultural employment has also impacted this rate. We used panel data specifications, both in static and dynamic design. The data used are collected between 1990 and 2019 on 38 African countries. Although generally urbanisation has increased during recent years in Africa, regions have experienced different pathways in the process. The results show that both trade openness and non-agricultural employment have been motivation for people to urbanise over years, in Africa. When we consider countries with high amount of people living in slums, they are more driven by employment purpose. Other variables such as per capita GDP and the fertility rate have positive and significant influence, while FDI and national investment have mixed impact. It is important to collaborate in a continental level to take advantage of the rapid urbanisation.

Suggested Citation

  • Adou, Niango Sika Antoine Brice, 2020. "Trade Openness and Employment, Implications on Urbanisation in Sub-Saharan Africa," MPRA Paper 104317, University Library of Munich, Germany.
  • Handle: RePEc:pra:mprapa:104317
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://mpra.ub.uni-muenchen.de/104317/1/MPRA_paper_104317.pdf
    File Function: original version
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Krugman, Paul, 1991. "Increasing Returns and Economic Geography," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 99(3), pages 483-499, June.
    2. Gilles Duranton, 2015. "Growing through Cities in Developing Countries," The World Bank Research Observer, World Bank Group, vol. 30(1), pages 39-73.
    3. Paul Collier & Anthony J. Venables, 2016. "Urban infrastructure for development," Oxford Review of Economic Policy, Oxford University Press, vol. 32(3), pages 391-409.
    4. Edward L. Glaeser & Joshua D. Gottlieb, 2008. "The Economics of Place-Making Policies," Brookings Papers on Economic Activity, Economic Studies Program, The Brookings Institution, vol. 39(1 (Spring), pages 155-253.
    5. Rainald Borck & Michael Pflüger, 2019. "Green cities? Urbanization, trade, and the environment," Journal of Regional Science, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 59(4), pages 743-766, September.
    6. Guy Michaels & Ferdinand Rauch & Stephen J. Redding, 2012. "Urbanization and Structural Transformation," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, Oxford University Press, vol. 127(2), pages 535-586.
    7. Henderson, Vernon, 2003. "The Urbanization Process and Economic Growth: The So-What Question," Journal of Economic Growth, Springer, vol. 8(1), pages 47-71, March.
    8. Davis, James C. & Henderson, J. Vernon, 2003. "Evidence on the political economy of the urbanization process," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 53(1), pages 98-125, January.
    9. Maurice CATIN & Saïd HANCHANE & Abdelhak KAMAL, 2008. "URBANISATION, PRIMATIE ET eTAPES DE DeVELOPPEMENT : EXISTE-T-IL UNE COURBE EN CLOCHE ?," Region et Developpement, Region et Developpement, LEAD, Universite du Sud - Toulon Var, vol. 27, pages 83-108.
    10. Maurice Catin & Saïd Hanchane & Abdelhak Kamal, 2008. "Urbanisation, primatie et étapes de développement: existe-t-il une courbe en cloche," Post-Print hal-01298852, HAL.
    11. Yi Lu & Jin Wang & Lianming Zhu, 2019. "Place-Based Policies, Creation, and Agglomeration Economies: Evidence from China's Economic Zone Program," American Economic Journal: Economic Policy, American Economic Association, vol. 11(3), pages 325-360, August.
    12. Hasan ENGIN DURAN & Sevim PELIN OZKAN, 2015. "Trade Openness, Urban Concentration And City-Size Growth In Turkey," Regional Science Inquiry, Hellenic Association of Regional Scientists, vol. 0(1), pages 35-46, June.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Dusan Paredes Araya & Tomothy M Komarek, 2013. "Spatial Income Inequality in Chile and the Rol of Spatial Labor Sorting," Documentos de Trabajo en Economia y Ciencia Regional 46, Universidad Catolica del Norte, Chile, Department of Economics, revised Apr 2013.
    2. Richard Bluhm & Christian Lessmann & Paul Schaudt, 2021. "The Political Geography of Cities," SoDa Laboratories Working Paper Series 2021-11, Monash University, SoDa Laboratories.
    3. Abbas, Syed Ali & Selvanathan, Saroja & Selvanathan, Eliyathamby A., 2023. "Structural transformation, urbanization, and remittances in developing countries: A panel VAR analysis," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 79(C), pages 55-69.
    4. Susana Katherine Chacón Espejo & Dusan Paredes Araya, 2013. "Income Inequality in Chile and the Rol of Spatial Labor Sorting," Documentos de Trabajo en Economia y Ciencia Regional 46, Universidad Catolica del Norte, Chile, Department of Economics, revised Apr 2013.
    5. Susana Katherine Chacón Espejo & Dusan Paredes Araya, 2013. "Spatial Income Inequality in Chile and the Rol of Spatial Labor Sorting," Documentos de Trabajo en Economia y Ciencia Regional 46, Universidad Catolica del Norte, Chile, Department of Economics, revised Apr 2013.
    6. Giulio Cainelli & Carlo Ciccarelli & Roberto Ganau, 2021. "Administrative reforms, urban hierarchy, and local population growth. Lessons from Italian unification," Papers in Evolutionary Economic Geography (PEEG) 2109, Utrecht University, Department of Human Geography and Spatial Planning, Group Economic Geography, revised Feb 2021.
    7. Roberto Ganau & Andrés Rodríguez-Pose, 2022. "Does urban concentration matter for changes in country economic performance?," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 59(6), pages 1275-1299, May.
    8. Jedwab, Remi & Vollrath, Dietrich, 2015. "Urbanization without growth in historical perspective," Explorations in Economic History, Elsevier, vol. 58(C), pages 1-21.
    9. Gao, Ming & Gu, Qiankun & He, Shijun, 2022. "Place-based policies, administrative hierarchy, and city growth: Evidence from China," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 115(C).
    10. J. Vernon Henderson & Adam Storeygard & David N. Weil, 2012. "Measuring Economic Growth from Outer Space," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 102(2), pages 994-1028, April.
    11. Christian Düben & Melanie Krause, 2021. "Population, light, and the size distribution of cities," Journal of Regional Science, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 61(1), pages 189-211, January.
    12. Cem Karayalcin & Hakan Yilmazkuday, 2015. "Trade and Cities," The World Bank Economic Review, World Bank Group, vol. 29(3), pages 523-549.
    13. Estrin, Saul & Nielsen, Bo B. & Nielsen, Sabina, 2017. "Emerging Market Multinational Companies and Internationalization: The Role of Home Country Urbanization," Journal of International Management, Elsevier, vol. 23(3), pages 326-339.
    14. Sanghamitra Bandyopadhyay & Elliott Green, 2018. "Urbanization and mortality decline," Journal of Regional Science, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 58(2), pages 483-503, March.
    15. Johansson, Anders C. & Wang, Xun, 2015. "Financial Liberalization and Urbanization," Stockholm School of Economics Asia Working Paper Series 2015-35, Stockholm School of Economics, Stockholm China Economic Research Institute.
    16. Karayalcin, Cem & Ulubasoglu, Mehmet Ali, 2009. "Romes without empires: urban concentration, political competition, and economic growth," Working Papers eco_2009_18, Deakin University, Department of Economics.
    17. Tripathi, Sabyasachi, 2012. "Large Agglomerations and Economic Growth in Urban India: An Application of Panel Data Model," MPRA Paper 41574, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    18. Douglas Gollin & Remi Jedwab & Dietrich Vollrath, 2016. "Urbanization with and without industrialization," Journal of Economic Growth, Springer, vol. 21(1), pages 35-70, March.
    19. Andreas Eberhard-Ruiz & Alexander Moradi, 2018. "Regional Market Integration and City Growth in East Africa: Local but no Regional Effects?," CSAE Working Paper Series 2018-09, Centre for the Study of African Economies, University of Oxford.
    20. Rodríguez-Pose, Andrés & Frick, Susanne, 2017. "Big or small cities? On city size and economic growth," CEPR Discussion Papers 12324, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Urbanisation; Trade Openness; Employment; Panel Data;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • F14 - International Economics - - Trade - - - Empirical Studies of Trade
    • O18 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Urban, Rural, Regional, and Transportation Analysis; Housing; Infrastructure
    • R11 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - General Regional Economics - - - Regional Economic Activity: Growth, Development, Environmental Issues, and Changes

    NEP fields

    This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:pra:mprapa:104317. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Joachim Winter (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/vfmunde.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.